


the rumor

by janaverse



Category: Gundam Wing
Genre: Explicit Language, Get Together, Light Angst, M/M, POV Duo Maxwell
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-11
Updated: 2019-07-11
Packaged: 2020-06-26 15:21:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,035
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19770991
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/janaverse/pseuds/janaverse
Summary: a rumor surfaces and duo is not happy with how it is affecting heero.





	the rumor

He hated the rumors.

On the surface, it appeared more innocuous than most, but it was hard to argue that this one was hitting a little closer to home.

It was obvious to Duo that it was affecting Heero more than he let on, but Heero clearly didn’t want to talk about it and Duo had known Heero long enough to know that letting it go was his best option.

Word had obviously spread as the days passed, and Duo could hear the chatter behind him as he waited in line for his lunch. He grit his teeth; it was safer to ignore it, though he was hard pressed to do so today. Heero had been in a particularly foul mood this morning, and Duo wondered if perhaps his presence was only making it worse.

Looking up as Wufei entered their office, Duo nodded to him as he approached Heero’s desk, and then used the distraction to slip out into the corridor. The door closed behind him, and Duo leaned against the wall, sighing as he closed his eyes.

The voices from inside were not loud, but Duo was not going to chance overhearing something he wasn’t supposed to. He strode toward the elevator, intending to take a trip down to street level to clear his head. When the door opened, he was surprised to see Trowa inside, dressed in jeans and a loose fitting t-shirt. It was as casual as he had ever seen him dressed – at least within the confines of the Preventer’s Building.

“Bailing?”

“Probably for the best.” Duo replied. “’Fei is in there with him.”

Trowa nodded, exiting the elevator and holding the door open to allow Duo to enter.

The ride down was swift, and Duo took several deep breaths as he neared the lobby. He should be the one up there, helping Heero to work through this. HIM! NOT WUFEI! NOT TROWA! He was Heero’s best friend, dammit, even if they were apparently not on speaking terms at the moment.

He couldn’t for the life of him figure out how that had happened!

Everything had been fine last week – before that article hit…

Who read that shit anyway?

Well, obviously SOMEONE did – or a whole lot of someones!

Maybe Heero didn’t trust him to give him the advice he needed to get through this mess and had turned to Wufei instead.

And that hurt. Duo couldn’t lie to himself about that.

He waved his Preventer pass as he exited through the security gate and headed outside. The afternoon air was hot and humid, and he reached up to loosen the knot on his tie as he descended the stairs. The sidewalks were crowded with pedestrians and the noise from the traffic on the street was loud. He was struck by the thought that maybe this wasn’t a good idea, but he kept walking, heading toward one of the side streets that was likely less busy.

He should have insisted that Heero talk to him; demanded it even! Never mind the lecture he was sure to get on minding his own business, or maybe one of Heero’s attempts at convincing him that nothing was wrong. Did Heero really think he was stupid? Or that he didn’t know how to read the stoic former pilot after all this time? Duo found no solace in either of those thoughts and reached out to drive his fist into the brick wall at his side.

The contact wasn’t as hard as it could have been, and when Duo pulled his fist back, he cradled it to his chest to quell the soft throbbing and internally berated himself. He might as well just bang his head against the damn wall for all the good it would do.

Fuck it!

He was going back up there, and if Heero didn’t like it, he could just tell him to get out. Not like he hadn’t done that before! Duo tried to convince himself he was used to it, but it had only happened that one time – and that was one time too many.

He practically ran into Wufei as he rushed up the steps two at a time, pausing only as Wufei reached out to grab his wrist.

“You have to talk with him, Maxwell.”

He shook his head. This was not on the list of desired outcomes. “He doesn’t want to talk to me, ‘Fei.”

“Did you try?”

Duo snorted, “There is no try.”

“He is embarrassed, Duo.”

“What? Why? He knows that I don’t believe any of that shit they say about any of us!”

Wufei shook his head. “Of course not. Rumors are horrible things, Duo, perhaps even moreso if they hold a sliver of truth.”

Having no immediate response to what Wufei said, Duo just shook his head. “It’s not...”

“I’m not the one you need to be saying any of this to, Maxwell.”

Wufei continued down the stairs, and Duo watched for only a minute before making his way back inside.

Trowa was still in their office when he arrived back upstairs, seated across from Heero’s desk, but leaning forward as the pair quietly talked.

Duo softly cleared his throat as a courtesy as he entered the room, passing by Heero’s desk to get to his own.

Trowa left shortly afterward with only a quiet goodbye, and Duo continued to work, keeping his eyes focused on the stack of paper in front of him. He could hear the soft click of Heero’s keyboard, letting him know that Heero had also began working again.

He thought a bit about what Wufei said and shook his head slightly. Duo was certainly no authority on the matter, but maybe there were occasions where rumors held a tiny hint of the truth, and if this was one of them…

“Uhm, Heero?”

There was a pause in the typing before Heero looked up. Duo might have said he was anxious, but this was Heero Yuy and Duo had never seen him do anxious. “Is dinner tonight at 19:00 okay with you, Duo?”

Heero’s response got the reaction he was likely looking for, but Duo tried to hide his surprise and replied. “Sure, Heero. It’s a date.”


End file.
